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W i n e s & V i n e s n O V e M B e r 2 0 1 4 127 WineEast tion, and then go back and add tartaric acid. There are two effects of adding tartaric acid; one is instantaneous, while the other takes quite a while. The wine- maker adds tartaric acid before fermenta- tion; some of it disassociates, and some will begin to push the pH down. During aging, sometimes in fermentation and cold stabilization, there will be significant pre- cipitation of potassium bitartrate. As that happens, the pH will drop. However, this is only true if the pH starts off below 3.8. If the pH is above 3.8 and you precipitate tartrate, the pH will rise. Therefore, it is important to get the juice below 3.8 prior to fermentation by adding tartaric acid, so that afterwards the pH will be in a place that when the tartrate precipitates, the pH will actually fall. Tartaric additions will drive the TA up, but during fermentation the amount of TA isn't important. After the pH has been low- ered initially, the wine can be de-acidified by adding calcium carbonate. However, to prevent potential calcium tartrate crystal- lization, Boulton recommended using the double-salt method, in which a smaller fraction of the tank being de-acidified has the full amount of carbonate that would have been added to the entire tank. The goal is to precipitate out both the calcium tartrate and malate. In such a case the pH rises up to 6 or 7. The de-acidification releases a CO 2 blanket over the wine. When the bubbles stop, the wine is filtered and back blended into the lot. This method will reduce tartrate, malate and calcium so that there will not be a calcium tartrate problem when the small lot is blended back. Color and tannin Two of the important indicators of red wine quality are color and tannin structure, and in cool and cold-climate growing regions, color instability and low tannins are major concerns. Anna Katharine Mansfield, assis- tant professor of enology at Cornell's New york State Agricultural Experiment Station, who spoke about these topics at the sympo- sium, will be writing an article on the sub- ject for a future issue of Wines & Vines. WE Every winemaker knows that the best wine starts with the cleanest equipment and bottles. Straight-A and One Step are ecologically formulated to provide the best and safest cleaning results. TERROIR: Good For Grapes, Not For Glass Taste the Wine not the Grime One Step for easy, single-step cleansing Straight-A for heavy-duty cleaning Clearly Perfect www.ecologiccleansers.com OneStepAd_01-09-12_Layout 1 1/9/12 10:14 PM Page 1 Basic Hoe comes with a Hillup and a Takeaway Blade. Additional attachments include .3 Tooth Cultivator, Undercutter Blade, Rotary head, " NEW " Rolling Cultivator and "Vine Auger". The Green Hoe Company, Inc. 6645 West Main Road, Portland, NY 14769 PHONE (716) 792-9433 FAX (716) 792-9434 WWW.GREENHOECOMPANY.COM GREEN GRAPE HOE EASTERN WINE LABS Serving the Analytical needs of East Coast Wineries WWW.EASTERNWINELABS.COM Ph 609-859-4302 Cell 609-668-2854 chemist@easternwinelabs.com AOAC Member EasternWineLab_Mar09.qxp 1/22/09 9:47 AM Page 1